Union State Council of Ministers approves fuel and energy budget for 2008

The December 26 session of the Council of Ministers of the Belarus-Russia Union State approved the Union State’s fuel and energy budget for 2008 and budgeted balance sheets of the demand and supply of the most important types of products, Prime Minister of Belarus Sergei Sidorsky told mass media. According to him, the session considered 16 various issues and took positive decisions on all of them. In particular, at present the Union State has been implementing about 40 programmes and sub-programmes. The Union State Council of Ministers took a decision to start carrying out two more programmes in the high-tech sphere. In turn, Prime Minister of the Russian Federation Viktor Zubkov underlined that in 2007 Belarus and Russia produced a record high economic outcome. The trade turnover between the two countries is expected to total $23-24 billion. “It is not a simple trade but mutual cooperation,” Viktor Zubkov underlined. According to the Russian Premier, during the session the sides discussed issues relating to the formation of the single economic space and the removal of mutual trade barriers. “Belarus and Russia do not have major disagreement on the issues,” the Russian PM noted.